Facing the Sun
by ASliverOfHope
Summary: (Cross uploaded on AO3 as always) Inspired by art by Fuyuure on tumblr. Hinata is a demon exiled to live alone on the mountains by the kingdom. Kageyama is an up and coming King. Hinata's life is changed when Kageyama befriends him.
I live my life in darkness. I'm surrounded by it everywhere I go. It's ironic, I suppose, that my surname, Hinata, means facing the sun or sunflower. I have never been either. A creature, a demon no one wanted, no one cared about. I've gotten so used to being alone that it has started to bore me.

The humans run around always with somewhere to go. Always working to make more money as if that will actually make them happier. It doesn't really matter, it's trivial. I have always been feared by humans because of my "evil" orange eyes, piercings and pointed black nails. If my appearance wasn't scary enough, I am surrounded by a black, dark cloud wherever I go. I couldn't be in the light if I tried. None of them even dare to get close enough to realize I'm actually harmless. I just bring the darkness with me. I could care less about their lives and destroying them with my darkness, or whatever rumor was circulating about me nowadays. Who wants to live in the pitch blackness? No one. People aren't afraid of the dark, not really, they're just afraid of the unknown that the dark brings.

During my 16th year everything changed. That's when he came into my life. He was the prince of our land and was coming up on his 16th year as well. He would be crowned King soon and with that came a whole country to run. So why was he wasting him time worrying about me? Beats me, but I do thank him for showing me real, genuine happiness.

—

I live up on a mountain to keep my cloud away from the people. Why bother when they don't want me anyway? I looked out my window this morning and was stunned to see the prince making the trek up to my little cottage. First of all, I have to commend him for making the journey. Second, I think he's nuts. I normally would try to hide, but I decided to sit at the top of the grassy knoll and wait for him. The prince was truly beautiful with his dark hair and eyes. I guess I was attracted to his dark features, but with a second look I was attracted to the way the sun hit his face. He seemed to carry the sun with him as if he was here to brighten up my darkness.

"What is this?" I asked as he presented me with a single sunflower.

"It's a sunflower, dumbass. Your name, Hinata means sunflower, right?" He said the first with a certain roughness, but the latter was said with sincerity.

"I know that!" I defended quickly. "I meant, why did you bring it?"

"To greet you. I thought it would be rude to show up with nothing."

And that greeting wasn't? I was still suspicious even though his attentions seemed pure. I narrowed my eyes at him, but accepted the gift anyway. "Why would you bother?"

"I'm going to be king soon."

"So you needed to make peace with the demon so he won't hurt your kingdom?" I grouched, used to this routine by now. Everything was always the same. Always boring.

"No. I know you won't hurt us." He stated simply as if it was as obvious as a fact. I must have looked completely shocked because he smirked at me knowingly. "I know you Hinata Shouyou. We grew up together, dumbass."

Kageyama Tobio! My mind screamed at me as recognition washed over me. Now I remembered. He was one of them few that didn't reject me. He was like me. He wasn't popular as a child because of his scary face. "Kageyama."

"Yes, exactly."

"What does becoming King have to do with seeing me?"

"I'm going to change how the kingdom sees you."

"Why?"

"Because you're my friend. No one should live alone."

He was so straight forward, just as I remembered. I always liked that about him. No games, no riddles to solve, he just said what he felt. I was about to accuse him and push him away. I wanted to ask him why he never helped me or defended me if we were friends. Then I realized he was a prince, he couldn't just go against what others wanted for him.

"I have to go. I snuck out to come see you. I promise I'll be back soon." He left, and I watched him go, doing nothing. He took the light with him, but he left a little for me. I brought the flower inside and put it in water. I smiled as it lit up my living room like a star in the night's sky. Sure, it was just a little difference, but it was the sun in my dark world.

—

"Kageyama!" I called as I saw him ascending the mountain to my house a few days later. I couldn't contain myself and I threw my arms around him. I regretted it the moment I did it. I watched my darkness consume him, blocking out the sun.

He smiled back at me and he wasn't even phased by the darkness. "Hinata, I'm happy to see you as well." He tucked another sunflower behind my ear and I could feel my heart flutter in my chest. The flower added another pinprick of light to my cloud. "I've decided you'll come live in my castle after my coronation. The people might not understand at first, but they'll adjust."

He wants me to come live with him? That didn't seem possible. I had never felt so special in my life. I may have imagined it, but I swear in that moment, the diameter of my cloud shrunk a little. "Really?"

"Really."

"I know we're friends, but I don't understand."

"You're beautiful, Hinata. Don't you see it? You're so different from everyone I know. Under all that darkness there is light. Your personality is infectious and you care for others even if they care for you. You're a dumbass if you can't see that you're special."

Again he blew me away with his words. I had never experienced this feeling before, but from what I've observed, I think I know what it is. I had observed it so many times, but I never thought I could have it. I think I'm a little bit in love. "I didn't know you had such fancy words, your highness."

He scoffed and rolled his eyes at me. "You don't have to call me that."

"Since we're friends can I call you Tobio?"

his cheeks pinked right below his gray eyes and he nodded. "Shouyou." That was all he said in return and it made my spine tingle. We spent the rest of the afternoon lying on the grass looking up at the clouds. For the first time in…well…in ever, I barely noticed my darkness. I would face the sun and that sun happened to be Tobio. He told me about his plans for the kingdom and I told him of all the things I wanted to with him. "I'll have to show you a game my friends and I play. We call it volleyball. We play it with one of the lower castle walls. Each team tries to hit the ball over and if it hits the ground on the opponents side the other team gets a point. I think you'd be good a it."

My eyes grew wide with anticipation and I jumped into the air with excitement. Yes, I was a little nervous to be with people again, but I could do it with Tobio. "I can't wait!"

He rolled his eyes at me, but he smiled all the same. He left when the sunset waving before he disappeared into the horizon. I watched him until he became a little dot at the bottom of the mountain. My heart ached for his light the minute I was alone again.

—

I paced my cottage and looked at the two sunflowers in the vase. They had long since died and were now just shriveled sticks in water. I think the diameter of my darkness has doubled. I can't see the sun any longer. Tobio hasn't been around in almost two months. Maybe I had gotten my hopes up too soon. My body ached and my lower lip was raw from my nervous biting. I was starting to be frightened of my own darkness for the first time since I was a child. There were so many unknowns. Had Tobio only been nice to me because he felt he had to? What if he had forgotten about me? Or maybe he finally got sick of the darkness. That wouldn't surprise me. He had only visited me twice and maybe even that was too much. What was darker than pitch? This feeling, this cloud. I hated everything about it. It ruined everything.

The days had started to blur into one another and I had stopped leaving my cottage entirely. I only knew the day by the number of sunrises. I hardly slept and barely ate. I heard the humans talk of this feeling. It was the aftermath of love, the pain when it didn't work out. This must be heartbreak. I thought Tobio understood me. He had when we were small, but maybe now it was over. He must have realized he had better things to do than hang out with a demon.

I thought of all the daydreams I had about living with Tobio. Exploring the castle, reading in the library, riding horses and playing volleyball. I would have also finally be invited a ball. I would finally know what it was like. I had been kidding myself. I would never be accepted into his world. His friends would never like me and the town would throw me out.

"SHOUYOU!" I hadn't heard his calling at first or maybe I thought I'd imagined it at first. This one was loud, it was close. The wooden door banged open so forcefully I thought it would come off its hinges. Tobio stood in the doorway completely out of breath, crown askew and his white-wool trimmed cloak was falling off his right shoulder. The shadows of my darnkess hit his face, but as usual, the light on his beautiful face was never truly snuffed out. "What's wrong?"

He must have noticed my cloud. Well it would be impossible not to notice, but I know it was darker than ever before. "I…" I couldn't even form words. I had been so worried he rejected me that I didn't know how to respond. Rejection, I was used to, but acceptance, not at all.

"I'm sorry I haven't been here. My father's been keeping a close watch on me lately. I haven't been able to get away. I didn't mean to leave you alone." He presented me with not one, not two, but a dozen sunflowers as an apology.

My lower lip trembled and I threw myself into his arms, digging my fingers into the red velvet on his back. "I didn't know. I thought…I thought you weren't coming back."

"Dumbass." He chided, holding me tightly against his chest. I could feel his heart pounding in sync with mine. I didn't look but I knew his face was burning with a crimson blush. "I promised didn't I?"

"It was today?"

"My coronation? Yes. Let's go home, Shouyou."

I pulled back and looked up at him I know I had tears in my eyes but I smiled through them. I didn't really know what I was doing, but it felt right. I got up on my tip toes and pressed my lips against Tobio's, surprised by how soft they were. He was frozen and I worried I had done the wrong thing. His shock only lasted a few seconds before he cupped my face and pressed into the kiss. It was simple and we didn't try to take it further and neither of us really knew what we were doing. It didn't matter to me, it was perfect. I finally didn't feel my darkness, in fact, it was being torn apart by the rays of light Tobio gave me. "Was that okay?" I asked, suddenly nervous as I looked up into Tobio's gray eyes.

He smiled down at me, mirroring the joy inside me. "Of course, dumbass."

A/N: chapter two is in the works I hope you enjoyed it


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